Tag: garden

St. Therese and Violets

The violets are in full bloom now. They always remind me of St. Therese of Lisieux. In The Story of a Soul, she uses the analogy of violets to represent all the little souls who give God joy as they strive to love Him in their everyday lives. In God’s garden, these little souls do not demonstrate the splendor of the rose or the whiteness of the lily, but they give God joy as his glance falls upon their simple beauty.

The color of violets is the color of Lent. This is a solemn season. We try to ponder the unimaginable gift that Jesus has given us in his passion. We can’t fully appreciate it or understand it. After all, we are only little souls, little violets in the face of such a Mystery.

Anticipation

Here in Southern New Mexico, it’s still winter. When I leave the house in the morning, it’s just above freezing, but by afternoon, it has warmed up to the fifties (F).

A few violets have appeared. Soon there will be a purple carpet of the little dears. And new shoots of tall sedum have appeared among the dead stalks of last year’s offering. They remind me of miniature cabbages.

Spring isn’t in the air yet, but it shimmers on the horizon.

Hidden

The entrance to our hidden garden

It’s late afternoon in the garden, and it’s November. The coral-colored blossoms on the yucca have turned into dry stalks (pictured above right). But there’s something about a hidden garden that’s always intriguing, even to its owners.

The shady side

The shady side of the garden is my favorite spot, especially in the heat of summer.

But the sunny side has its appeal as well, even in November when most of the blossoms have gone. The potted olive tree on the left is only two years old. This year it produced some ripe olives. (Yes, Gentle Reader, I did taste one off the tree. Big mistake.)

If you look closely through the branches of the olive tree, you will see an image of Our Lady of Guadalupe gazing down upon it all.

This is Mary’s Garden.

Perfect Rose

My November garden is looking a little ragged these days. The leaves on the sedum, plumbago, and vitex are fading. At the same time, there are bright spots. The cherry sage is in bloom, and the roses are still providing a few offerings. The holly berries have turned a brilliant orange-red. I will rely on them to cheer me through the winter.

When I went out to survey the fading glory, one perfect rose caught my eye. I gave it to my husband.

It occurs to me that splendor can come in a single package.

Tall Sedum et al

More than a couple of decades ago, a neighbor took some cuttings from some sedum plants that were potted on the White House grounds in Washington, DC. (I won’t say which neighbor took them, and I won’t say which president was in office.) My neighbor secreted the cuttings in her suitcase and planted them in pots when she came home a week later. They thrived, and they continue to thrive in her garden until this day. The plants that I grew from the cuttings she gave me are thriving as well. The ones pictured above with the light pink blossoms are descendants from my neighbor’s original cuttings. This year, I added the rust-colored variety from a local nursery. It’s nice to have plants that come into bloom late in the season.

In another part of the garden, the purple cloud bush has burst into full bloom in response to the monsoon rains.

It’s the rock roses, however, that take the prize for the cheeriest late-season bloomers.

Pink

OK, I know this blog is supposed to be about gardens, but I saw this beauty at the grocery store, and it awoke in me a previously-unknown desire to become a car person. Asked my husband to get me one, but so far, he’s not buying it. Sigh.

Just to keep this blog honest, here’s a photo of my mountain patio pots.

Companions

My cacti are blooming just in time for Good Friday. The prickly spines remind me of the crowning of thorns and bitter suffering of Jesus, but the lovely blossoms suggest resurrection — the resurrection of Jesus and the resurrection that each of us ultimately longs for.

The Vinca (Periwinkle) vines are bursting with new life. I started the plants last summer as small cuttings from another pot. All of my other pots were occupied at the time, so I stuck the tender shoots into the pot with the cacti. I wondered how they would get along.

They seem to like each other.

Periwinkle

Even though the temperature is still dancing around 32ᵒ F in the night, the days are warming up. The first blossom has opened on my variegated vinca (Periwinkle), along with some healthy new shoots that will make good cuttings for future plants.

I love it when my garden gives me gifts to give to friends and neighbors.

Waking Up

At night, the temperature still falls to the mid-20s F. The violas and kale don’t mind.

Last summer I grew some tall sedum plants from cuttings provided by a generous neighbor. They completely died back when winter arrived, but now, tiny rosettes of future sedum plants are appearing in spite of the cold.

A few buds are gracing the violets.

They know spring is coming.